1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to sheet handling apparatus and, particularly, for apparatus for receiving from a continuously operating conveyor a sequence of discrete sheet articles such as clothing and which moves each article from the conveyor to another position where the articles are stacked in a pile.
2. Description of Related Art
In the garment industry, there are numerous occasions when it is desirable to move garments from an operating station and then stack them in a position adjacent the operating station, so that they can subsequently be removed and acted upon again. (The term "garment" as used in the present specification and claims means pieces of garments, and cloth, as well as substantially complete garments.) According to the present invention, a simple and effective apparatus is provided for effecting such stacking. The apparatus is very versatile, being utilizable in a number of different operations during garment manufacture, and in fact having general applicability to situations where sheets of material are to be moved from one position, and stacked in a pile.
The invention is particularly adapted to be used in conjunction with an automatic sewing machine. The automatic sewing machine is conventionally mounted on a table, or like flat surface, and according to the invention a plurality of conveyor belts are mounted just above the flat surface to automatically convey garments away from the automatic sewing machine in a generally horizontal and linear path. An electric eye sensor, or the like, can sense the position of a thread connecting the garment to the automatic sewing machine, and operate a knife for automatically severing the thread. Adjacent the ends of the conveyor belts is a slide, comprising a plurality of slats which slant downwardly from the conveyor belts toward a pile of stacked garments. The stacker according to invention cooperates with the slats of the slide to move garments from the slide and stack them in the pile.
The stacker comprises a plurality of rods, and an elongated support having a plurality of generally parallel through-extending openings, the openings extending generally perpendicularly to the dimension of elongation of the support. The openings have slightly larger cross-sectional dimensions than the cross-sectional dimensions of the rods, and the rods are received in and extend through the openings in slidable relationship with the support. The rods have enlarged ends so that they cannot move completely through the openings. The support is rotated about an axis coincident with its dimension of elongation, in 180.degree. increments, and the support is positioned so that the rods move in an arcuate path through the spaces between the slats during rotation of the support, to engage the garments and stack them adjacent the slide. Rotation of the support is effected automatically upon sensing of the position of the garment on the slide.
After each 180.degree. incremental rotation of the support, the rods are engaged by a powered roller and move linearly through the openings in the support to a position wherein they are again below the spaces between the slats.
It is the primary object of the present invention to provide a simple and effective sheet stacking apparatus, particularly one adapted for stacking garments that are conveyed away from a sewing station. This and other objects of the invention will become clear from an inspection of the detailed description of the invention and from the appended claims.